


Day One Hundred Ten || A House in the Country

by 365daysofsasuhina



Series: 365 Days of SasuHina 2019 [110]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Blood, F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-21
Updated: 2019-04-21
Packaged: 2020-01-23 05:55:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,136
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18543661
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/365daysofsasuhina/pseuds/365daysofsasuhina
Summary: It's a bit of a pipe dream, sure...but maybe someday, they'll both get away. Someplace far from Konoha, in the peace and quiet.





	Day One Hundred Ten || A House in the Country

What a day.

Flopping backward onto her bed, Hinata takes a big breath...holds it...then exhales a long, slow sigh. She hasn’t been this tired in a very,  _ very _ long time.

And that’s saying something.

Sasuke’s not home yet, which only makes her mood all the more sour. She’d thought taking a day off from work to instead check in with her family would be a good thing.

Anything but.

Hanabi is still very young, but making good progress in her role as pseudo-clan head as Hiashi trains her. And Neji’s wisdom is helping her make even greater strides.

But gods above is her clan still insufferable at times. Old-fashioned, conservative, and so obsessed with tradition it’s like trying to pour molasses on a cold Winter day when it comes to taking steps into the future.

It’s funny. At one point, Sasuke had asked her if she’d ever consider leaving Konoha with him. To travel a bit, and then perhaps settle down elsewhere due to his...rocky relationship with the village. And though she’d ended up agreeing that yes, she would if he ever seriously asked her...she’d never truly considered it.

But days like today make that  _ so _ tempting.

She has half a mind to go to their neighbor’s and see if her sister-in-law is home. Itachi’s wife is ever-patient, and makes the perfect person to vent to. Hinata often feels guilty unloading on Sasuke, given that he’s had far more serious problems. She always feels a bit infantile complaining about her little grievances in the face of all he’s been through. Though he’s assured her he doesn’t see it that way, she still hesitates.

But even that doesn’t sound appealing, as much as she enjoys the other woman’s company. Instead, Hinata sulks for a little while longer before dragging herself up to make a cup of white tea. With the occasional sip, she dozes at the table, trying to calmly ignore her bad mood.

Twenty minutes into her cup, Sasuke comes home. She can tell he’s been sparring with Naruto: his clothes are a mess of dirt and even some blood, but his expression is lax. Maybe even a little tired.

“Looks like you need a shower.”

“Hn.” The one-sound answer - varying only by tone - has a myriad of different meanings. This one is in agreement, but also hinting he’s not quite ready to do so. He sits along the side next to her, giving her a glance. “...what’s wrong?”

She jolts a bit. How did he -?

“You’re doing that thing.”

“W...what thing?”

“That thing where you sit really quietly with a cup of tea, looking like you’re trying not to behead someone.”

Glancing to him with a furrowed brow of concern - she doesn’t want to  _ behead _ someone! - Hinata replies, “...that’s...an interesting way to put it.”

“What happened?”

“I...thought I’d visit my clan while you were gone.”

A mix of understanding and irritation tinges his face. “...I think that’s explanation enough.”

Hinata knows he gets it. The Uchiha were thrown in with the Hyūga when they first started returning to Konoha. He’s been introduced all too well to her clan’s ways of doing things. And they annoy him even more than they do her, somehow.

“You all right?”

She sighs. “Yes, I’m fine...just a little r-ruffled, that’s all. My father can be so…” A cut to silence. No point in rehashing what they both already know. “...let’s just say I was seriously considering your proposal by the time I got home.”

“Proposal?”

“To leave.”

Genuine surprise - uncensored, atypically, on the usually-stoic Uchiha face - lifts his brows and widens his eyes. “...are you serious?”

“Yes. Sort of. Mostly I’m just frustrated, but…” Hinata leans an elbow atop the table, resting her chin in her hand. “...sometimes I think it might be nice. Just...find ourselves a nice little house in the country. Leave the village behind. As much as I love Konoha - or...at least, parts of it - it’s wearing in its own ways. The thought of just...running my own home, away from anyone else, enjoying the peace and quiet...it’s tempting. But...I d-doubt it will ever happen. There’s still too much tying us both here.”

Sasuke - expression calmed once more - considers her quietly. “...maybe when we retire, eh?”

That earns a soft laugh. “...maybe so. We can all go back into those m-mountains where your sister-in-law was born. Become hermits, ne?”

It’s Sasuke’s turn to chuckle a bit. “I won’t lie...I thought about it. It’s about as off-grid as you can get. There’d be no being bothered if we were that remote. But...you’re right. We’ve too much to tend to in Konoha. Our families, our friends, our work...maybe someday we’ll get away from it all. But for now, the  _ all _ is just too important.”

“Mm…” Hinata gets lost in thought for a moment, weighing the dream against reality. While she wouldn’t hesitate to follow Sasuke where he went - and she knows he’ll go wherever the rest of his family goes - she knows it’s not so simple as just packing up and finding someplace new to live. Being tied to a hidden village - to a nation - is still a tricky thing. Being marked a missing nin is still a possibility. And while she knows Kakashi - and Naruto too, given his upcoming title as Hokage - would likely be willing to grant them leave...something tells her it wouldn’t be so simple.

She’s one of the best wielders of the Byakugan. And the three full-blood Uchiha left - Sasuke, Itachi, and Shisui - are a very rare commodity. The odds of Konoha being willing overall to let them leave seem rather low. Konoha had lost them all for a time. Something tells Hinata they wouldn’t be so keen to see them leave again.

“...you’re doing it again.”

“Hm?”

“The look.”

A blink. “...oh.”

“Really thinking about it, aren’t you?”

“Sort of...more just…” Hinata sighs. “...how difficult it would be to gain permission, if we  _ were _ to try and migrate elsewhere.”

“Probably...Hi no Kuni might still be viable, but Konoha wouldn’t be eager to let us stray too far,” Sasuke agrees, both tone and expression stoic as he simply speaks plainly on the matter. “Hence why I was reluctant to return at all...I knew leaving again wouldn’t be so easy.” For a moment, he scowls. “...we’ve seen how far some of them will go to drag me back, even when I don’t want to be…”

She wilts a bit. “Y...yeah.”

“...well, it’s not a serious thought at the moment,” Sasuke then admits. “It’d take too much doing to try on a whim. Maybe someday.”

“Yes...maybe someday. But it might come s-sooner than you think if my clan doesn’t shape up soon.”

Sasuke snorts. “Fair enough.”

**Author's Note:**

> Oh golly I had a long day, so...honestly idk if this is as good as I wanted it to be @~@ But I tried.
> 
> ALAS sees the Uchiha stay in Konoha. But over the time I've written it, I've gone back and forth between having them leave eventually. So this isn't TECHNICALLY breaking ALAS canon. Maybe they'll end up out of the village by the end. Who knows? Not me, lol
> 
> But yes, that's all for today...I'm a tired bean, so I'm gonna call it a night. Thanks for reading!


End file.
